We strongly encourage you to submit a draft copy of your proposal for a one-time pre-review to elevate(at)mitacs.ca. Pre-reviews must be provided using the current program application form and will be accepted no later than June 10, 2020 at 5 p.m. PT.

Proposals with a not-for-profit partner must seek partner and project eligibility approval before proceeding. Please contact us at elevate(at)mitacs.ca or a business development representative to discuss the eligibility of an NFP organization before submission of the completed application package.

If you are an academic supervisor, please ensure that you have brought this to the attention of your academic institution. Please include in the final Mitacs Elevate Proposal application the following information:

The completed Mitacs Elevate proposal should be written and submitted to elevate(at)mitacs.cano later than July 22, 2020 at 5 p.m. PT. Late submissions will not be accepted.

A completed Application Package consists of the following:

A completed application form
• If you are having difficulty viewing the application form, we recommend saving the file to your desktop. To do this, please right-click on the above application form link and select “Save Link As”. Then use Adobe Reader to access it at your convenience.

A memorandum (Section 7 – MEMORANDUM) signed by all parties, including relevant university research office, submitted as a scanned PDF

Applicant’s CV

Proposed academic supervisor’s CV

Three signed letters of support required, on letterhead:

One (1) letter of support from the proposed academic supervisor

One (1) letter of support from a former supervisor or person familiar with the fellow’s research expertise

One (1) letter of support from an eligible partner organization on partner organization letterhead that confirms the amount of the financial commitment

Any supplementary documents as applicable

Please submit the documents of your package as separate documents. Please do not combine them all in one file. ZIP files recommended.

If references would like to send their letters confidentially, they may email them to elevatereferences(at)mitacs.ca. All letters must be received at Mitacs by the competition deadline.

When you have all the necessary documents ready, please submit them by email to elevate(at)mitacs.ca. All applicants will receive a confirmation email from Mitacs when a complete application has been received.

Mitacs recognizes that due to the pandemic and the uncertainties it’s created, you may be operating with limited ability to plan future research projects. If you feel that you cannot submit an Elevate proposal at this time due to the pandemic, please reach out to us at elevate(at)mitacs.ca.

From former/current supervisors

Former or current supervisors who are providing a letter of recommendation on behalf of an applicant should include the following information:

When did you supervise the proposed fellow, and how many other students have you supervised at the same level? [as applicable]

Please comment on the productivity and accomplishments of the proposed fellow, relative to other researchers you have known and/or supervised at the same career stage.

Make note of any particular achievements (e.g., publication record, patents, awards and scholarships, high-impact research results, leadership, mentoring, accomplishments in teaching, related industry or entrepreneurial activities) by the proposed fellow that you would like to further comment on.

From partner organizations

A current or potential industrial supervisor who is providing a letter of recommendation on behalf of an applicant should include the following information:

To what extent have you interacted with the applicant and/or the proposed academic supervisor in the past?

Based on the proposed research project and on the previous interactions you had with the applicant, how do you foresee that the applicant’s work might benefit your company?

If you are not already collaborating with the applicant, how do you envision your role in an eventual partnership? For example, you may describe the expected level of implication of your enterprise in terms of project design, in-kind contributions and access to facilities;

The Elevate program provides professional skills and R&D management training to fellows. Please comment whether you anticipate this training to be beneficial to the success of the fellow and your collaborative research project. If the fellow will have additional training opportunities through your organization, please provide details on these.

If applicable, please describe the location/site that the applicant will be working at, and how much time you expect the applicant to work directly with your company

Please indicate your willingness to fund the applicant for the duration of the fellowship and in what amount. If you are unable to support the fellow for the entire two years, please provide an explanation.

Successful applicants receive a Mitacs Elevate award of $60,000 per year, renewable for a second year, for a total award of $120,000, as well as the mandatory research management training curriculum ($15,000 non-cash value over two years); a minimum stipend / salary of $55,000 per year is allocated to the fellow and up to $5,000 is allocated to research costs. Mitacs follows tri-council guidelines with respect to the use of funds towards eligible research costs. Awards are typically forwarded annually as a lump sum of $60,000 to the supervising faculty member, to be held as a research grant at their home university, pending Mitacs receipt of the following:

the $30,000 annual partner contribution

where applicable, documentation that a $5,000 annual contribution will be made available to the fellow in lieu of provincial funding. Visit our eligibility page to determine if additional funding is required for your application.

any necessary documentation such as a Declaration of Conflict of Interest and/or other documentation as appropriate

Please note: Costs can only be incurred after research approval of the proposal AND the receipt of the partner funds at Mitacs as per Mitacs Policy.